The present invention relates to an operation device for operating parameters to be used in signal processing and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program for operating parameters to be used in signal processing, which are suitably applicable to desired signal processing devices, such as a mixer.
Recent years have seen wide-spread use of a system which is constructed to perform various signal processing functions, such as a music production function and a video editing function, by a personal computer (PC) or other computer device executing dedicated application programs, such as a software application for a music production system (commonly known as “DAW” that is an abbreviation of Digital Audio Workstation). In this type of system, an operation device (also referred to as “controller”) is provided for operating an application running on the computer device. The operation device or controller is, for example, a DAW-dedicated controller externally connected to a PC. Generally, such a type of controller includes a plurality of channel strips. A multiplicity of logical signal processing channels to be used for various signal processing functions by the application are allocated as objects of operation, or operation targets, of the channel strips. A user can adjust values of various parameters of the allocated channels by use of operators (i.e., input elements) of the individual channel strips.
For example, the controller disclosed in “MC Mix (registered trademark) professional control surface” available from the Internet at http://connect.euphonix.com/documents/MC_Mix_User_Guide_rB_Jap.pdf (hereinafter referred to as “Non-patent Literature 1”) includes a push-type channel shift button as a means for collectively changing the channel allocation to the individual channel strips. Per user's pushing or depressing operation of the channel shift button, the user can collectively change allocated channels of the channel strips to different or other channels by one channel (i.e., by a change amount equal to one channel).
Generally, the controller includes notification sections that notify information about allocated channels of (to) the individual channel strips. Each of the notification sections includes a display section that displays a channel name or the like, and a movable fader that notifies a value of a parameter, such as a sound volume level, by moving a position of a knob portion. Generally, such a notification section is constructed in such a manner that, each time the allocated channel is changed by one channel (i.e., by a change amount equal to one channel), the information about the allocated channel too is updated by one channel and, then, updating of content or information notified by the notification section is repeated until the allocated channel has been changed or shifted or switched to a desired allocated channel, i.e., until a channel shift instruction has been completed.
However, with the above-described construction where the content or information notified by the notification section is updated each time the allocated channel is changed, movable component parts, such as the movable fader, of the notification section would be unnecessarily fatigued because the movable components are driven extremely frequently while the allocated channel is successively shifted (changed). Besides, such frequent movement of the movable component parts, such as the movable fader, tends to be visually bothersome or annoying to the user and hence unnecessarily fatigues the user. Further, the frequent movement of the movable component parts, such as the movable fader, would disturb the user's operation for switching the allocated channel